Bootie Barker and Jeff Green came up short in the Nextel Open. Credit: Autostock

Try as he might, Green unable to catch Riggs

CONCORD, N.C. -- When it's win or go home, there are a bunch of heartbroken folks in the garage area.

Scott Riggs led 29 of the 30 laps in the Nextel Open, with Denny Hamlin nosing in front for one circuit, and thoroughly dominated the sprint race to advance to the All-Star Challenge.

Jeff Green couldn't quite catch Scott Riggs. Credit: Autostock

Nextel Open Unofficial Results Pos. Driver Make 1. Scott Riggs Dodge 2. Jeff Green Chevy 3. Brian Vickers Chevy 4. Denny Hamlin Chevy 5. J.J. Yeley Chevy 6. David Stremme Dodge 7. Jeff Burton Chevy 8. Sterling Marlin Chevy 9. Robby Gordon Chevy 10. Ken Schrader Ford • Complete results, click here Nextel Open winnerScott Riggs takes the checkers in the Nextel Open Nextel OpenView all the highlights from the Nextel Open Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

Candidates for biggest heartbreak were legion, starting with Hamlin, who led the first lap before Riggs got going. Hamlin tried in vain to hold onto the back of Riggs' Charger on four restarts but could never quite get to the Dodge's back bumper.

Consideration also has to go to Robby Gordon, who started 14th and climbed all the way to seventh before tangling slightly with Reed Sorenson as the laps wound down. Sorenson clipped Gordon as he drove past in Turn 3 and Gordon returned the favor by driving Sorenson up the hill in Turn 2.

Gordon was bad-fast in the middle stages and pulled off several three-wide passes on his way through the field.

Casey Mears deserves a mention because he brought out the first caution flag on Lap 4 by spinning through the infield grass, ending his night. Kenny Wallace did the same several laps later, and Scott Wimmer had a mechanical failure -- or a tire failure, take your pick -- and slapped the wall in his Chevrolet.

But the driver with the biggest heartache at the end had to be Jeff Green, who took a shot or two at Riggs at the start of the second segment and had to watch Riggs motor off into the distance the rest of the way.

Green had an opportunity to get past Riggs off Turn 2 on the final restart of the first segment, but Riggs ran him up the banking and killed Green's momentum, leaving the door wide open for Hamlin down the inside.

"I was better than Scott [Riggs] the first four or five laps of the last segment, but I started getting tight and he got away from me a little bit and then we had to hold off the 25 [Brian Vickers]."

Green said his problems arose on the double-file restarts.

"I had to start outside of those guys a couple times on the restarts," Green said. "Double-file is something we don't do other than here, so I had to fight those guys on the outside and pass them two or three times so that made me wear my tires harder."